Canadian pop star Justin Bieber has apologized to fans in London after turning up late for his performance Monday night.

However, he has disputed how late he was.

Fans and music critics say his performance was two hours late, but Bieber argues that he was 40 minutes late, attributing the difference to “exaggerated” media reports.

Bieber tweeted that he was late because of “technical issues” but “there is no excuse for that and I apologize for anyone we upset.”

His performance at London’s O2 Arena was due to start at 8:30 p.m., but critics say the 19-year-old superstar did not get going until 10:22 p.m.

However, Bieber shot back at those critics, saying that after three opening acts, he was scheduled to go on stage at 9:35, not 8:30.

He blamed “technical issues” for the fact he did not go on stage until “10:10.”

Bieber seemed upset with the press.

“I’m not okay with things being exaggerated,” he tweeted, acknowledging that he has had disagreements in the past with the press.

“My relationship with the media is not always easy,” he tweeted.

However, he returned to the apologetic tone.

“I never have any intent to upset or let anyone down. … Once again sorry for anyone upset.”

Bieber vowed that Tuesday night’s show will go on on time and he promises an “amazing” show.

“Now we have a show to do today and I’m gonna focus on the positive and put on a great show tonight here in London,” he tweeted to his 35 million followers.

“NIGHT 2 at the 02 is gonna be even better. get ready. Thanks.”

The popular Sun tabloid newspaper said many fans, some of them as young as five years old, had gone home by the time Bieber began, while others voiced frustration.

There was no on-stage apology.

The O2 Arena, where Bieber is also due to perform on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, issued an apology on his behalf to all his fans who are known as Beliebers.

“Sorry to all the Justin Bieber fans for the lateness of his show tonight,” the O2 said in a Twitter message late on Monday. “The Tube (underground trains) will still be running when the show finishes.”

Wendi Peters, the former Coronation Street actor, also joined in on the chorus of complaints, tweeting that Bieber had finally come on stage at the “ridiculous time” of 10:24 – nearly two hours after his advertised time of 8.30.

“I shall have an extremely moody daughter tomorrow. I’m livid. Ridiculous time for school kids,” she tweeted.

Many tweeted that they left the concert early to catch trains.

On Tuesday, the venue received concerned queries on whether similar delays may happen again this week.

“Is he planning on doing this again tonight or can someone take control of the jumped up prima donna?” wrote @Jo_Evans.

The O2 Arena replied: “Jo—we will be doing everything within our power to ensure Justin makes it on stage at the right time.”

Many fans voiced their frustration at having to wait, while others reacted angrily to the headlines.

“Justin Bieber is my fave person but 2 hours late on stage is a joke!” fan Jess wrote on Twitter. “Does he realise that he has fans under the age of 10?”

Others jumped to his defence early on Tuesday.

“Feel really bad for @justinbieber now! Yes he was late but he put on a flipping good show! It was amazing,” said one.

Not all reviewers were quite so kind for the singer, who was named by Forbes magazine in 2012 as the third most powerful celebrity in the world.

“By the end, the O2 was barely half-full and when Bieber asked ‘Who’s seen me play before?’, he might have been better wondering who would spend time, money and adoration on seeing him again,” wrote critic John Aizlewood.

Bieber’s visit to Britain has probably not been his best.

On March 2, the day after he turned 19, he tweeted “worst birthday” amid reports some of his entourage were turned away from a London nightclub because they could not supply adequate proof of their age.

Bieber, who was discovered on YouTube in 2008, last month became the youngest artist to land five chart-topping albums in the United States following the release of his latest, Believe Acoustic.

With files from the Star&#x2019;s wire services

More on thestar.com

We value respectful and thoughtful discussion. Readers are encouraged to flag comments that fail to meet the standards outlined in our
Community Code of Conduct.
For further information, including our legal guidelines, please see our full website
Terms and Conditions.